- Six crypto projects secured $214 million in funding this week.
- A16z crypto led the charge with an investment in Catena Labs.
- The industry is expected to raise $18 billion this year.
In a week when Bitcoin hit an all-time high, venture capitalists invested $214 million in six projects, according to data from DefiLlama.
In addition, Theta Capital Management closed a $175 million fund for blockchain investments.
PitchBook projects that crypto projects to raise $18 billion this year, almost double the annual average in 2023 and 2024.
And that comes on top of the ample dry powder in VC crypto funds.
Andreessen Horowitz’ crypto arm raised a whopping $4.5 billion in its fourth fund in 2022, taking its total to $7.6 billion, and much of that capital has yet to be invested.
This week’s rounds catapult the total raised in 2025 to just under $7.7 billion, an 87% jump over 2024, according to data from DefiLlama.
And the Trump administration’s support for the industry, coupled with expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates, are driving momentum.
Here are the top three biggest raises this week.
Worldcoin, $135 million
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s eyeball-scanning crypto venture bagged $135 million this week.
Worldcoin secured the capital by selling WLD tokens to its earlier backers a16z crypto and Bain Capital Crypto, the startup said.
The company said it raised the money to meet growing demand for its World IDs and to support its expansion across the US and beyond.
Slash, $41 million
Challenger bank Slash announced a $41 million Series B round this week. Goodwater Capital led the raise.
The startup provides banking services to companies, such as marketing agencies and crypto firms.
Slash enables crypto-native businesses to swap between fiat currency and crypto holdings, as well as manage all their various crypto holdings, Fortune reported.
Catena Labs, $18 million
A16z crypto also led Catena Labs’ $18 million seed round this week.
Sam Neville, the co-founder of stablecoin giant Circle, is the co-founder behind Catena Labs, a startup aiming to build an artificial intelligence-native bank where AI agents do all the trades.
AI agents refer to computer programmes that hoover up data and perform tasks, such as potentially trading crypto.
The startup will integrate, but not be defined by stablecoins, Neville told Fortune.
You’re reading the latest installment of The Weekly Raise, our column covering fundraising deals across the crypto and DeFi spaces, powered byDefiLlama.
Eric Johansson is DL News’ News Editor. Got a tip? Email at eric@dlnews.com.
